Reaction of 2,3-diaminomaleonitrile with diones

2,3-Diaminomaleonitrile (DAMN) was allowed to react with 2,6-heptanedione to produce (2Z)-2-amino-3-[(1E)-3-methylcyclohex-2-enylideneamino]but-2-enedinitrile and (2Z)-2-amino-3-[(1Z)-3-methylcyclohex-2-enylideneamino]but-2-enedinitrile. The reaction of DAMN with 2,7-octanedione yielded trans-5,8a-dimethyl-1,5a,6,7,8,8a-hexahydrocyclopenta[e]-1,4-diazepine-2,3-dicarbonitrile. DAMN reacted with 2,8-nonanedione to afford trans- and cis-5,9a-dimethyl-5a,6,7,8,9,9a-hexahydro-1H-benzo[e]-1,4-diazepine-2,3-dicarbonitrile. These compounds were characterized by X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, and DFT calculations.